Los Angeles-area State Lawmakers Call For Wasserman To Step Aside

SACRAMENTO, California — Los Angeles lawmakers with the biggest stake in the 2028 Olympic Games called on Casey Wasserman to step down as chair of the LA28 committee after the longtime entertainment executive appeared in the Epstein files.

Wasserman, who has not been accused of wrongdoing, has said he regrets the flirtatious emails he exchanged in 2003 with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell before either faced criminal charges. But more than half of the 18 Los Angeles County lawmakers who serve on the state’s legislative Olympics committees told POLITICO in interviews on Tuesday that the entertainment mogul’s past associations with Epstein and Maxwell should lead to his resignation.

“It’s clear that his public profile is causing a tremendous amount of pain to victims,” said Democratic Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal, who represents parts of LA County, including Long Beach, and was among 10 lawmakers calling for his ouster. “That’s enough for any of us to want to press the pause button and assess.”

A day after fielding an inquiry about Wasserman, LA County Legislative Delegation Chair Tina McKinnor on Wednesday released a statement on behalf of the group’s 37 members calling on him to step down, saying his “personal conduct has become a distraction.”

The state lawmakers’ stance adds to the mounting pressure on Wasserman just days after Mayor Karen Bass told CNN that LA28 — the organizing committee for the Summer Games and Paralympics in Los Angeles, whose executive committee last week backed the chair — needed to find a new leader.

“The mayor’s right on that one,” said Assemblymember Nick Schultz, a Democrat who represents Burbank. “I think it's important that LA28 move forward, and to do that, we need to have maximum confidence in the people that’ll be moving it forward.”

It’s a significant rebuke from state politicians who will host the Olympics in their backyard, and as Los Angeles looks to its delegation in Sacramento — already influential due to its size and diverse makeup — to help prepare the state for the pressure that the Games will exert on the city’s infrastructure, workforce and economy.

Wasserman has faced an unrelenting series of professional repercussions this month as stars like pop singer Chappell Roan, country artist Orville Peck and Olympic medalist Abby Wambach have left his talent agency. The exodus continued even after Wasserman told employees on Friday he would sell his company.

“This moment demands selflessness and accountability,” said Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez. “Anything that distracts from the success and credibility of the LA Olympics risks diminishing a historic opportunity for Los Angeles and our country."

On Tuesday, not everyone was in alignment calling for Wasserman’s exit. Two lawmakers said they were not sure where they landed on the question for a variety of reasons, including what they described as a lack of information. Six, including McKinnor, initially declined to comment or did not return requests for comment.

Among those who expressed concern but stopped short of calling for his resignation is state Sen. Ben Allen, a Democrat who chairs the state Senate’s special committee on the Olympics and other international sporting events set to take place in the city.

But even he was hardly coming to Wasserman’s defense. He said he would be in contact with LA28’s executive board, which — days prior to Bass’s condemnation — said it would not remove Wasserman after an independent reviewer found that his relationship with Epstein and Maxwell “did not go beyond what has already been publicly documented.”

“I am certainly very concerned about Mr. Wasserman’s relationship with Ms. Maxwell and hope the Board is continuing to carefully and independently examine all of the evidence available to us to appropriately hold their leadership accountable,” said Allen. “At some point, this case might become such a distraction that regardless of the facts and particulars, it is in the best interest of the Games for Mr. Wasserman to step down.”